Friday, February 16, 2018

John F. Hamm, of Williamsport, left us to be with Jesus on Feb. 15, 2018, at Valley View Nursing Center in Montoursville. He was 88 years old. Born May 26, 1929, in South Williamsport, John was the oldest son of Anastasia and George Hamm.

He was a 1947 graduate of St. Mary’s High School in Williamsport. He graduated in 1955 from Lycoming College with a degree in Accounting, and passed the CPA exam the same year.

John began work as an accountant for the State of Pennsylvania, then worked as a corporate accountant and financial officer for Sylvania/GTE/Sprint Telenet, ending his career as the Chief Financial Officer of Plessey Telenet in Basingstoke, England. His career took him and his family to Warren, Pa.; Syracuse, N.Y.; Littleton, Mass.; Higganum, Conn.; and Mt. Laurel, N.J. before living more than a decade in Vienna, Va. In 1992, he retired and returned to Williamsport.

In 1955, he married Bernadine Troisi, who preceded him in death in 1993. In 1994, he married Catherine (Tupper) Klopp. He is survived by two sisters, Mary Formica and Honora (Gabriel) Popper; by eight children, Rev. Juliana (Mark) Holm, of Rebersburg, Pa., Fr. John F. Hamm Jr., of Worcester, Mass., Lisa (Robert Greenawalt) Hamm-Greenawalt, of Lakewood, Colo., Michael (Paula) Hamm, of Centreville, Va., Peter (Kathleen) Hamm, of Maineville, Ohio, Philip (Rosemarie) Hamm, of Ashburn, Va., Andrew (Elizabeth) Hamm, of Chesterfield, Va., and Patrick (Ines) Hamm, of Pinneberg, Germany; by three beloved stepchildren, Mary Elizabeth (James) Hendricks, of Wasilla, Alaska, Thomas (Kim) Klopp, of South Williamsport, and Margaret Ann(Peter) Noyes, of Inverness, Fla.; twenty-one grandchildren (with a twenty-second expected in April); and eleven great-grandchildren; as well as numerous family and friends.

He was preceded in death by his brother, George A. Hamm Jr. John served his country in the U.S. Air Force after World War II. He was stationed in Roswell, N.M., and Mildenhall Air Force Base in England, among other places.

He was a pillar of the church wherever he lived. A devout Christian and devoted family man, he inspired several of his children to work in ministry. He loved to travel, especially to Alaska and Europe. He was deeply compassionate and generous, even bringing bags of apples with him into the city when he visited London during his England period so he would have healthy food to give homeless people. He loved the outdoors and the environment, recycling long before it was fashionable, and often visited the family farm in Cascade Township, taking his children on long hikes and fishing trips to Peterman’s Pond.

John was a gentle, loving, and practical man and a brilliant accountant who took care of financial matters for many friends, relatives and his church well into his 80s. He had a beautiful tenor voice, and when he wasn’t doing the readings, he sang in church choir and as a cantor nearly every Sunday. He was also an extraordinary minister, taking communion to residents of Sycamore Nursing home every Wednesday for 20 years.

He loved Big Band music; Vaughn Monroe was his favorite singer. He was also extremely knowledgeable about classical music and opera, and all eight of his children pursue music in their lives in a variety of forms. But he also loved the dumbest, goofiest humor, especially Spike Jones and Bob and Ray, and assigned ridiculous nicknames such as "Turbo," "Marvin," "Adelaide" and "Ray Charles" to his children and grandchildren before they were born. He passed that on to his children as well, so that the family home was always filled with laughter.

He will be missed.

Services will be held on Monday, February 19, at St. Boniface Catholic Church, 326 Washington Blvd. in Williamsport. A viewing will begin at 10 a.m. and a Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at 11 a.m., with internment at St. Boniface Cemetery.

In lieu of flowers, the family respectfully suggests memorial contributions may be made to either St. Lawrence Catholic Church, c/o St. Boniface Church of The Susquehanna Foundation for the benefit of the Cancer Treatment Center, 1001 Grampian Blvd., Williamsport, PA 17701. www.crousefuneralhome.com, Please visit the guest book to share a fond memory